Deschutes Bubbly Cider:
Fizz-it!
Packaging Design
Project Brief
Deschutes is a craft brewery that started off as a pub in the year of 1988 in Bend, Oregon. The brewery started out with its public house only selling 310 barrels of beer and is now selling over 225,000 barrels a year. In order for the company to keep expanding, its audience has to expand as well. Rather than just creating alcoholic beverages for those who fit the age limit, it is important to think about alternatives for teens and young adults . The goal for this project is to design packaging for a non-alcoholic version of popular adult beverages such as beer or a cider that is targeted towards a younger audience.
The Look & Feel
My approach for this project was to create packaging for a cider that feels playful and carefree, almost like an organized chaos. I wanted to go with a collage style since it represents the idea of being whimsical and having fun while you’re still young!
Stan the chameleon
Who is Stan, you ask? Stan is an adorable little chameleon who changes color to match with the different flavors of cider that he drinks! He is often the life of the party and is always seen doing something fun, like hanging onto a floatie or catching some waves. Is Stan always on vacation? Does he not have any responsibilities? How does Stan have so much fun?
The Story
Believe it or not, Stan wasn’t always a fun chameleon! One sunny day, a small crab (who requests to remain anonymous) was wandering along the beach and was surprised to discover a dull-looking chameleon on his path. He keeps a distance to stay hidden and couldn’t help but to observe what the chameleon was doing or what he was looking at, to be exact. After closer observation, the crab notices that it wasn’t just any chameleon, it was Stan the Chameleon! Stan is a well known chameleon in the area as he would come down to the beach from time to time for a little dip in the water. He would just be seen floating, but that was it. No one really knew how to approach him. The crab then realizes that Stan has picked up a glass bottle and was looking at a note inside. What did the note say? He didn’t know. All the crab could say was that after that day, Stan was never the same again.
The Design
Each flavor is differentiated by the colors as well as the sort of beach activities that Stan is doing. The three flavors that I went with are: black cherry blast, juicy green apple, and rockin’ raspberry. Stan can be seen with a leis around his neck as he is relaxing beside a palm tree, hanging onto a flamingo floatie, and even catching some waves as he surfs. Fun fact: no one ever knew Stan could surf. Being a chameleon, Stan changes color to match with the different flavors of cider. Each back label of the different flavors contains a letter from the anonymous crab who is journaling his discoveries about Stan as he attempts to uncover the secret behind the mysterious letter and how Stan became so carefree.
The Name
The name FIZZ-IT was created because it sounded like something you would say when you want someone to hand you a bubbly and refreshing bottle of cider. Stan’s catchphrase is “What’s Fizzin’”, which he only says when there’s a FIZZ-IT! bottle in his foot. That’s when you know he’s here to have a good time.
